Saturday, September 14, 2013

India: Update--Four Defendants Sentenced to Death in Rape, Murder of 2012 University Student, 23

According to The Bangkok Post, a New Delhi court on Friday (September 13) sentenced to death four defendants for the December 2012 gang rape and murder of a young New Delhi woman, 23, who was pursuing a physiotherapy degree, ordering them to the gallows for a brutal attack that riveted India,
where it became a symbol of the rampant mistreatment of women and the
government's inability to effectively deal with crime.

Issuing his decision, Judge Yogesh Khanna said the attack "shocked
the collective conscience" of India. "In these times, when crime against
women is on the rise, the courts cannot turn a blind eye toward such
gruesome crimes."

Like all death sentences, Khanna's order must be confirmed by India's
High Court. Those convicted can appeal their case to the High Court, as well as
to the Supreme Court, and even ask the president for clemency.

The victim's family, along with numerous politicians and government
officials, had long called for the gang-rapists to be executed. The family was in
the courtroom as the sentence was announced, and were relieved at the
results. "I am very happy our girl has got justice," said the victim's
father, who cannot be named under Indian laws guarding his daughter's
identity as a rape victim.

The rape victim and a male friend, who not romantically involved, were returning home after seeing the movie, "Life of Pi,"when the assailants lured them into boarding a bus they
were joy-riding through the city. The defendants quickly beat up the male friend, held the
woman down and took turns raping her. Brutally, they also penetrated her with a
metal rod, causing the injuries that led to her death in a Singapore
hospital shortly after the gang-rape.

COMMENT: India's Supreme Court has ruled that the death penalty should be used
only in "the rarest of rare cases," though what defines those cases
remains highly debated. Only two people — both terrorists — have been
executed in India since 2004.

Under intense pressure, the Congress party-led national government
worked hard to project a tough-on-crime image after the attack,
reforming a series of laws on sexual violence. Many in the Congress,
which faces dwindling support for national elections next year, had made
clear they wanted the men to be executed.

An estimated 100 and 150 people are sentenced to death in India in
most years, but the vast majority of those cases are eventually commuted
to life in prison.

Ram Singh, 33,
hanged himself in prison, though his family insists he was killed.
Another man — an 18-year-old who was a juvenile at the time of the
attack and cannot be identified under Indian law — was convicted in
August 2013 and will serve the maximum sentence he faced, three years in a
reform school.

The underlying current in the India of today is that most women are treated as second-class citizens and as sexual objects to be routinely abused and exploited, even by family members.

At the time of the attack, the victim was awaiting exam results for a
physiotherapy degree. Regrettably, the results came after her death. She had successfully passed.

As noted in previous postings in sexual assault, rape and gang-rape in India, I discourage solo foreign women from traveling alone in India, given the large number of foreigners who have been attacked and/or raped.

I have posted a number of security tips for foreign women traveling alone in India. If any of our readers want me to re-post this list, just email me at:

About Me

I retired from the US State Department in April 2006, after a career as a special agent, Senior Regional Security Officer (SRSO), director of training, chief investigator of the Cyprus Missing Persons Program, director of security of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and as a senior adviser in the Office of Anti-Terrorism Assistance.
My book, STAYING SAFE ABROAD: TRAVELING, WORKING AND LIVING IN A POST-9/11 WORLD was published in May 2008.
A complete update of STAYING SAFE ABROAD 2015, will be release during early 2015 for the iPad, Kindle and Nook and other e-readers.
I am a former Federal Firearms Dealer (US), a certified NRA pistol instructor and a certified NRA Range Safety Officer.
My career has also included 15 years as an international security consultant; for ten years I served as the security adviser to the Inter-American Development Bank.
I additionally, served six years in the Marines, which included combat service in Vietnam.
I am available for operational assignments, lecturing opportunities and in providing security solutions anywhere in the world.